Vintage bike rebuild

carl_p

I guess we've all considered it from time to time, but what the pitfalls and challenges about restoring a vintage bike?

I'd love to shall we say restore a frame from 70-80s bike but with more modern components. Is this feasible? Will modern seat stems and drop bars etc fit? The same applies to brakes and gearing. What would be the limitations in terms of what could be fitted. Would parts be difficult to find?

Would appreciate a bit of advice or warnings, so I can get this idea out of my head one way or the other.

Thanks in anticipation.

mtbhenry888

Will modern seat stems and drop bars etc fit? The same applies to brakes and gearing. What would be the limitations in terms of what could be fitted. Would parts be difficult to find?

the main problem you will have is that the rear dropouts of a bike from the 80s/70s will be either 120 or 126mm (most probably) modern road hubs are 130mm so they won't fit unless you cold set the rear stays, basically bend them outward, which could go south very fast!

modern 27.2 posts are probably the biggest modern post that would fit if the bike takes 27.2 posts that is most older bikes have either 26mm, 24.5 or all manner of other sized posts depending on age and manufacturer. brakes are interchangable but may require some modification to the bolt that mounts them, modern frames have a recces for the brake bolt whereas an old steel frame nmay not. modern gears will work as long as you have the correct hangers on the frame and the right diameter clamp on the front mech for example, the correct rear wheel, cassette, chain, shifters etc...

it would be possible but you would have to be sure what sizes the frame was and what sizes of stuff to buy, bikes from the 70s/80s will have quill stems and threaded 1" headsets which are not interchangable with modern 1/18 stems and headsets. modern 25.4 bar clamp bars should fit most quill stems however.

parts can be found on ebay, you can still buy quill stems and 1" headsets, there are loads on ebay!

hope this helps

carl_p

Thanks Henry that's very helpful indeed. I didn't appreciate there were such differences.

What I like about older bikes is the narrow tubing of the frames compared to the oversized frames of modern bikes. I'd like to get the best of both worlds in which case I my not be looking at a vintage frame at all. Anyone know in what year roughly did frames revert to modern day sizings?

Gavin Gilbert

Oversized/funny-sized tubes have been around since the 1930's (Bates with Cantiflex tubes, Granby and others with Taper tubing) but the first time I can recall seeing a 'modern' bike with fat tubes was around the end of the 1990's. I can also remember thinking 'Christ, that's ugly'

I've restored (that's as in proper restoration) several bikes from the mid 1930's to the late 70's and agree with Henry that you'd have trouble making modern parts fit an old frame. I'd also suggest it would look bloody awful having seen it done by other people.

There's enough late 70's and early 80's kit available at cycle jumbles and on ebay to make a proper restoration reasonably simple.

roger_merriman

some parts can be done with out too much problems though not cheap, if the frame is a old steel 126mm then 130mm new wheels shouldn't be a problem and then 9,10,11 cogs if one wishes.

same with brakes levers etc not too much of a issue. it's what i've done with old red which is about 1986, what is unknown as it got given a 'intresting" paint job at some point and i've yet to find any serials on the frame to say work out what it is.